Daily Encouragement Net
The online Bible teaching ministry of Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope, encouragement and exhortation.

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Monday, October 25, 2021

Amish alfalfa wagon
Hay wagons always grab my attention.
This load of alfalfa is waiting for transport to the barn.

"Do Something"

Message summary: As we wait for God to "do something" our call, whatever happens, is to stay faithful to God.

Listen to this message on your audio player.

“Although our sins testify against us, O LORD, do something for the sake of your Name. For our backsliding is great; we have sinned against you” (Jeremiah 14:7).

Ten years ago Rick Levine was a pediatric doctor in his early fifties working at nearby Hershey Medical Center (the hospital we go to) with a specialty in eating disorders. He was married till 2013 and has two children. In 2011 he started pretending he was a woman named Rachel and the last ten years his career has skyrocketed; first as our Pennsylvania health secretary, in which during the early days of covid we were subjected to the utterly bizarre sight of a man dressed as a woman giving us health advice! Now he's been promoted to a position in Washington and last week was made the first four star "female" admiral. We truly live in Bizarro world.*

Do you ever feel like this:

I woke up this morning
Saw a world full of trouble now, thought
How'd we ever get so far down, and
How's it ever gonna turn around
So I turned my eyes to Heaven
I thought, "God, why don't You do something?"

Jeremiah lived during the years immediately prior to Israel’s destruction and captivity in Babylon. The spiritual and physical conditions were horrific. God’s judgment fell not only the idolaters but also upon His own people (read Lamentations 2). Jeremiah pleaded with the people to repent and turn to God and earnestly prayed as expressed in the daily Scripture verse.

He begins with a confession of sin, "Our sins testify against us... For our backsliding is great; we have sinned against you". Jeremiah did not argue against the basis of God’s judgment but readily acknowledged the sins that were an inarguable witness against the character of God’s people. He appealed to God’s mercy based on His sinless character and for His honor and glory.

“O LORD, do something for the sake of your Name.” I find his appeal so interesting, reflecting the desperation of the times. “Do something”, he cried out, without being specific. As I consider the state of our country and world today I find myself also using this non specific appeal. I want God to act but am uncertain of how God's actions will look like or how they might be played out. As the great sins in our land and throughout the world are considered will this action be:

1) The return of God’s Son in the culmination of the Church age,
2) A great revival, with a restoration to living by God’s standards or
3) A pouring out of God's powerful judgment.

I sense that we are at some type of tipping point and will soon find out. Our call, whatever happens, is to stay faithful to God.

The basis of Jeremiah’s appeal was "for the sake of your Name". Now I admit I can have a selfish motivation for wanting to see God do something! Surely Jeremiah was considering much more than his own personal comfort and well-being and more than that of the people he cared for so deeply.

He was first of all concerned for the sake of God’s Name. He had seen the mighty acts of God in the past and certainly didn’t want God to be viewed by the unrighteous as a powerless, helpless God. He was surrounded by visible yet inanimate and powerless godhead figures of the unbelieving nations as mentioned in v. 22: “Do any of the worthless idols of the nations bring rain?”

Surely he wondered how all this fit in with the promised Messiah and the establishment of God’s kingdom. Well, God did indeed do something, although it wasn’t in the typical fashion of fairy tales that usually includes this ending, “and they lived happily forever after”. God’s judgment came upon the land and the Israelites were taken captive in Babylon. Yet God had and will always have a plan for His people even if it is carried out while in captivity or under His judgment. Those who remained faithful to Him are known as “the remnant”. (see Ezra 9:13)

Today God is doing something and will continue to do something. He is reigning and His kingdom will come. May our driving cry for God’s intervention, in whatever form it may be revealed be not so much for our personal comfort, but for the “sake of God’s Name”. Notwithstanding the reality of evil, be deeply assured today that God’s ultimate plan for His children is always indescribably good!


Be encouraged today, (Hebrews 3:13)


Stephen & Brooksyne Weber

Praying man Daily prayer: Father, if we search our hearts we too will cry out with Jeremiah, “Our sins testify against us.”  Our behavior reflects the inner desires of our hearts and all too often it does not reveal God-like character.  Worthless idols are of greater desire to so many of us replacing the devotion that once belonged only to You. We repent of our sins and seek Your intervention to heal our land for the sake of Your name, for Your honor and glory.  In Jesus’ name we pray.  Amen.



Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources

"Do Something"  Video  Matthew West In this song we are reminded that God has gifted each of us to do something!

"Do It Again"  Video  Michael W. Smith

"He Will Hold Me Fast"  Video  Keith & Kristyn Getty

Here's some music from our church service yesterday where we were blessed to hear the choir and orchestra again:

"Crown Him With Many Crowns"  Video

"Is He Worthy"  Video

* My opening observation is now very politically incorrect. We are all supposed to just join in the fantasy and on social media you will be punished if you don't. (Such as a rep that tweeted the truth.) But the mainstream media dutifully goes along with the nonsense such as this article at CBS. "The former pediatrician's appointment also made her the first female four-star admiral in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps' history."



Wagon with mums, Lancaster County, PA 10/24/19
Wagon with multi-colored mums along Musser School Road.

Hay bales on Farmersville Road, Lancaster County, PA  (Click to enlarge)
Lots of hay bales along Farmersville Road.
(Click to enlarge)

Amish boys on hike
These cousins are headed out to explore nature in the leaf strewn woods. That hike still looks appealing to me!

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Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version.



Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."



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